Stress Relief through Laughter

Whether it’s grant deadline stress (something we know a lot about here!) or the general stress of living, one of the things Grant Coach MaryEllen Bergh recommends is laughter.  Here’s her advice on the topic:

Life can be stressful and, in the current economic climate, we are dealing with challenging and serious concerns – individually and professionally – each and every day. I am here to tell you that there is a remedy that is fun, free and easy to use and it will improve your health, relieve stress, and improve your relationships. What is this magic elixir? It is none other than laughter.

Laughter is contagious! The sound of someone enjoying a good belly laugh infects everyone, even eliciting a tiny smile from the dourest sourpuss within hearing distance. Laughter makes you feel good and that good feeling stays with you even after you quit laughing – for up to 45 minutes, actually. Humor and laughter has helped me keep a positive, optimistic outlook even through sadness and pain. Laughter makes me feel lighter and, during the busy grant season when things can get a bit overwhelming, humor helps me relax and recharge; it relieves my stress which, in turn, improves my focus so I actually accomplish more. I love the laughter break!!

Laughter is also good for your health. Scientific evidence has shown that humor and laughter help people breathe easier and it massages the heart and other vital organs. It may also increase the release of disease-fighting cells in the immune system. Like the effects of exercise, laughter quickens the pulse and stimulates the cardiovascular system. Laughter triggers the release of endorphins promoting an overall sense of well-being and, in some instances, temporary relief from pain. In addition, humor can alleviate negative emotions -it’s hard to feel angry, sad, or anxious when you’re laughing.

Start now to bring more laughter into your life. According to Laughter is the Best Medicine (helpguide.org), here are some things that you can do right now to incorporate humor and laughter into your life.

  1. Smiling is the beginning of laughter. When you look at someone or see something even mildly pleasing, practice smiling.
  2. Count your blessings. Make a list of the good things in your life. Keep a gratitude journal that allows you to focus on the positive. Negative thoughts are barriers to humor and laughter.
  3. When you hear laughter, move toward it. Sometimes humor and laughter are private, a shared joke among a small group, but more often it is not. People are happy to share something funny because it gives them an opportunity to laugh again and feed off the humor you find in it. When you hear laughter, seek it out.
  4. Spend time with fun, playful people. These are people who laugh easily – both at themselves and life’s absurdities – and who routinely find the humor in everyday events. Their playful point of view and laughter are infectious.

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Would you like more tips from the Grant Coach on staying sane and happy in the grant world?  Become a member of GrantGoddess.com!

Assessing Results: Are You a Quant or a Qualit?

In this post, Non-profit Consulant Derek Link offers his thoughts on balanced assessment and evaluation:

In the world of social entrepreneurship the use of metrics for assessment of results has sparked an ongoing debate. The lines have been drawn between mathematically inclined folks who like to measure things using quantitative data (called Quants) and those who want to describe the social impact of programs using primarily qualitative data (called Qualits).

I would refer to myself as a hybrid, a Quali-quant. For me, the argument about which type of data is better is meaningless unless the right questions are being asked. Once you know what you want to know; in other words, once you know what will best demonstrate that your mission is accomplished, the kind of data needed to measure that reveals itself.

And the type of data is usually not one to the exclusion of the other. Typically a result is explained best by viewing it through data binoculars, not through a data telescope. I use the example of a child who comes to school on test day. The Quant will want to examine the child’s test score to see whether he has achieved to an expected level, whether he has raised his achievement from previous test administrations, how he compares to his peers, and how his test scores aggregated reflect on the teacher’s ability and the school’s curriculum and instructional program.

The Qualits, on the other hand, will want to modify the interpretation of the test score with qualitative information. Perhaps the child arrives hungry because the family was late getting up and she never had breakfast. Perhaps the child is sick or was up all night due to family violence. These qualitative factors impact the ability of the child to score well but are difficult or impossible to quantify.

In the end, I believe it is a disservice to the process/program/organization to have an imbalanced approach to assessment of results. Start off by asking the right questions.

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For more resources to help you with the evaluation of your programs, read some of the articles on our FREE Evaluation Resources page or view some of our free  recorded webinars on program evaluation. For an even higher level of support, become a member of GrantGoddess.com.

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Assessing Results: Are You a Quant or a Qualit?

In this post, Non-profit Consulant Derek Link offers his thoughts on balanced assessment and evaluation:

In the world of social entrepreneurship the use of metrics for assessment of results has sparked an ongoing debate. The lines have been drawn between mathematically inclined folks who like to measure things using quantitative data (called Quants) and those who want to describe the social impact of programs using primarily qualitative data (called Qualits).

I would refer to myself as a hybrid, a Quali-quant. For me, the argument about which type of data is better is meaningless unless the right questions are being asked. Once you know what you want to know; in other words, once you know what will best demonstrate that your mission is accomplished, the kind of data needed to measure that reveals itself.

And the type of data is usually not one to the exclusion of the other. Typically a result is explained best by viewing it through data binoculars, not through a data telescope. I use the example of a child who comes to school on test day. The Quant will want to examine the child’s test score to see whether he has achieved to an expected level, whether he has raised his achievement from previous test administrations, how he compares to his peers, and how his test scores aggregated reflect on the teacher’s ability and the school’s curriculum and instructional program.

The Qualits, on the other hand, will want to modify the interpretation of the test score with qualitative information. Perhaps the child arrives hungry because the family was late getting up and she never had breakfast. Perhaps the child is sick or was up all night due to family violence. These qualitative factors impact the ability of the child to score well but are difficult or impossible to quantify.

In the end, I believe it is a disservice to the process/program/organization to have an imbalanced approach to assessment of results. Start off by asking the right questions.

—————-

For more resources to help you with the evaluation of your programs, read some of the articles on our FREE Evaluation Resources page or view some of our free  recorded webinars on program evaluation. For an even higher level of support, become a member of GrantGoddess.com.

Changing Lives through Social Entrepreneurship

There has never been a better time to do good and lots of bright minds and able business people are doing exactly that. Take the example of  Kiva.org where the slogan is “where loans change lives”. The good folk at Kiva have developed an online tool that enables an average person to make a mico-loan to people in poverty with a desire to start a business.

Is that cool or what? You open an account and fund it, then you are able to loan this money to someone in the world. The loan is approved and monitored through what are called Micofinance Institutions, or Partners, all over the world.

One example of a Partner is Esperanza International founded by David and Vicky Valle. Dave was once a pro baseball player. This organization is working in the Dominican Republic and has made nearly 2 million dollars in microloans to over 8,300 individuals! The loan delinquency rate is a little over 2% which is remarkable.

Kiva has made over $117,921,960 in loans as of the writing of this bog post and has given over 170,000 loans around the world. Nearly 100,000 of those loans have ended. The cool thing is that these are loans, not donations, so the beneficiaries are committed to repayment! The average default rate on all Kiva loans is under 2%.

Cash is king for anyone that wants to start a business and investment capital is hard to come by in the best economies so Kiva is providing a “leg up” for the poor.

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Changing Lives through Social Entrepreneurship

There has never been a better time to do good and lots of bright minds and able business people are doing exactly that. Take the example of  Kiva.org where the slogan is “where loans change lives”. The good folk at Kiva have developed an online tool that enables an average person to make a mico-loan to people in poverty with a desire to start a business.

Is that cool or what? You open an account and fund it, then you are able to loan this money to someone in the world. The loan is approved and monitored through what are called Micofinance Institutions, or Partners, all over the world.

One example of a Partner is Esperanza International founded by David and Vicky Valle. Dave was once a pro baseball player. This organization is working in the Dominican Republic and has made nearly 2 million dollars in microloans to over 8,300 individuals! The loan delinquency rate is a little over 2% which is remarkable.

Kiva has made over $117,921,960 in loans as of the writing of this bog post and has given over 170,000 loans around the world. Nearly 100,000 of those loans have ended. The cool thing is that these are loans, not donations, so the beneficiaries are committed to repayment! The average default rate on all Kiva loans is under 2%.

Cash is king for anyone that wants to start a business and investment capital is hard to come by in the best economies so Kiva is providing a “leg up” for the poor.

How is Your Organization’s Operational Equilibrium?

This is the third and final post in a series of three posts on Organizational Equilibrium, written by Non-Profit Consultant, Derek Link. Parts 1 and 2 were posted on February 16 & 18, 2010.

Operations that are out of balance can compromise the accomplishment of the mission through waste and duplication of effort. In this post, the various activities an organization undertakes to carry out its mission are what I am defining as operations. Key factors that can lead to operational imbalances are 1) lack of adequate internal planning, 2) lack of collaboration, 3) inadequate feedback loops.

Strategic planning to accomplish a mission includes identification of critical success factors. Factors commonly include things like raising enough money, employing the right people, or recruiting the right Board members. In order to make sure that the organization has the capacity internally to accomplish its mission, all critical success factors must be identified then activities and feedback loops must be put into place to make sure each one is attended to. Missing a critical success factor can compromise the mission. For example, in planning to cook and distribute hot meals to seniors, nobody was assigned to gas up the van and by the time the gas card was located, the van taken to the gas station, and the food delivered, it all got cold or it spoiled.

An organization that operates in isolation may duplicate effort and thereby waste resources. Using the senior meal example again, what if an organization decided to deliver Thanksgiving meals to seniors this year but didn’t ask any other organizations in the area if they were going to do the same? Suddenly a senior may receive more than one hot meal on the same day while other seniors may have gone without. Collaborative planning can keep such operational imbalances from happening.

Disequilibrium in operations occurs when planning is inadequate and this can compromise the mission. A key mistake that causes operational disequilibrium is lack of feedback loops. Feeding seniors is a good thing but if food is delivered they don’t want, can’t eat, or which requires preparation they can’t accomplish, then food is wasted. But if nobody asks the seniors what they need, want, and can handle, then the mission is compromised by lack of feedback and an operational imbalance is created. In this case, the actual need isn’t being met because feedback from the recipients of services isn’t being collected and used to refine operations.

In order to have a balanced operation, the organization’s activities must be effectively executed, effectively coordinated, and accurately targeted. Organizations must engage in detailed planning that attends to every critical success factor. Organizations must collaborate with other organizations that have similar missions in order to make sure they are being efficient and avoiding duplication of effort. Finally, operations must be designed to meet the real need, not the perceived need. By attending to these three factors, organizations can successfully accomplish their mission.

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

How is Your Organization’s Operational Equilibrium?

This is the third and final post in a series of three posts on Organizational Equilibrium, written by Non-Profit Consultant, Derek Link. Parts 1 and 2 were posted on February 16 & 18, 2010.

Operations that are out of balance can compromise the accomplishment of the mission through waste and duplication of effort. In this post, the various activities an organization undertakes to carry out its mission are what I am defining as operations. Key factors that can lead to operational imbalances are 1) lack of adequate internal planning, 2) lack of collaboration, 3) inadequate feedback loops.

Strategic planning to accomplish a mission includes identification of critical success factors. Factors commonly include things like raising enough money, employing the right people, or recruiting the right Board members. In order to make sure that the organization has the capacity internally to accomplish its mission, all critical success factors must be identified then activities and feedback loops must be put into place to make sure each one is attended to. Missing a critical success factor can compromise the mission. For example, in planning to cook and distribute hot meals to seniors, nobody was assigned to gas up the van and by the time the gas card was located, the van taken to the gas station, and the food delivered, it all got cold or it spoiled.

An organization that operates in isolation may duplicate effort and thereby waste resources. Using the senior meal example again, what if an organization decided to deliver Thanksgiving meals to seniors this year but didn’t ask any other organizations in the area if they were going to do the same? Suddenly a senior may receive more than one hot meal on the same day while other seniors may have gone without. Collaborative planning can keep such operational imbalances from happening.

Disequilibrium in operations occurs when planning is inadequate and this can compromise the mission. A key mistake that causes operational disequilibrium is lack of feedback loops. Feeding seniors is a good thing but if food is delivered they don’t want, can’t eat, or which requires preparation they can’t accomplish, then food is wasted. But if nobody asks the seniors what they need, want, and can handle, then the mission is compromised by lack of feedback and an operational imbalance is created. In this case, the actual need isn’t being met because feedback from the recipients of services isn’t being collected and used to refine operations.

In order to have a balanced operation, the organization’s activities must be effectively executed, effectively coordinated, and accurately targeted. Organizations must engage in detailed planning that attends to every critical success factor. Organizations must collaborate with other organizations that have similar missions in order to make sure they are being efficient and avoiding duplication of effort. Finally, operations must be designed to meet the real need, not the perceived need. By attending to these three factors, organizations can successfully accomplish their mission.

Grant Writing Success Starts with an Abundance Mentality

Attitude really is just about everything when it comes to success of any kind. Grant Coach MaryEllen Bergh shares her thoughts on the importance of maintaining an abundance mentality in the grant world:

How can the way you think about resources (time, energy, people, money) affect your success? If you always think about what you don’t have (scarcity), you are not able to see what you do have (abundance) and you see only problems instead of solutions. Scarcity thinking is the enemy of change – for individuals and organizations.

People with a scarcity mentality tend to see everything in terms of win-lose. There is only so much; and if someone else has it, that means there will be less for me. The more principle-centered we become, the more we develop an abundance mentality, the more we are genuinely happy for the successes, well-being, achievements, recognition, and good fortune of other people. We believe their success adds to…rather than detracts from…our lives.

In any task that we undertake, our success depends on a variety of things but one key component that is frequently overlooked is having an abundance mentality. Viewing things from this perspective allows you to look at how something can be accomplished rather than why it can’t be done; you look at possibilities rather than problems. People who begin from abundance believe that there are enough resources available to reach their goals and also that their success doesn’t mean failure for others.

Scarcity thinking, on the other hand, is a belief that there is not enough to go around and that, as a result, we must settle for less. For example, instead of “We can’t ask for that much money, we are only a small district…they won’t ever give it to us” think “What can we achieve for students in our district when we are able to fully fund this program?” Instead of “Look at all the resources we need” consider “Look at all the resources we have.” Scarcity thinking is limiting but safe; we don’t have to move into new territory. A scarcity mindset gives us permission to excuse poor performance (“We don’t have the time or the money or the people to do this!”). While we need to think realistically about the alignment of resources used with resources available, an abundance mentality allows for innovative ways of thinking about the use of those resources and how we deliver services. The challenge is to override your fear and to recognize when you have moved into that scarcity mindset.

Abundance starts in your mind. The more you think that you have all the resources that you need to succeed, the more you will succeed. Thinking abundantly reveals possibilities and opportunities that might never have occurred to you if you weren’t open to the concept that there is enough for everyone. As individuals, we are often willing to challenge and change our belief systems, but we can’t go very far in changing the mindset of an organization if the leadership doesn’t see the need to change their patterns of thinking. What kinds of activities need to happen in your organization to change from a focus on scarcity to one of abundance?

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Would you like more insight from MaryEllen?  Visit the Coach’s Corner on the GrantGoddess.com member site for multimedia resources and lots of wisdom and support from our Grant Coach. Click here to learn more about it and to sign up.

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com

Grant Writing Success Starts with an Abundance Mentality

Attitude really is just about everything when it comes to success of any kind. Grant Coach MaryEllen Bergh shares her thoughts on the importance of maintaining an abundance mentality in the grant world:

How can the way you think about resources (time, energy, people, money) affect your success? If you always think about what you don’t have (scarcity), you are not able to see what you do have (abundance) and you see only problems instead of solutions. Scarcity thinking is the enemy of change – for individuals and organizations.

People with a scarcity mentality tend to see everything in terms of win-lose. There is only so much; and if someone else has it, that means there will be less for me. The more principle-centered we become, the more we develop an abundance mentality, the more we are genuinely happy for the successes, well-being, achievements, recognition, and good fortune of other people. We believe their success adds to…rather than detracts from…our lives.

In any task that we undertake, our success depends on a variety of things but one key component that is frequently overlooked is having an abundance mentality. Viewing things from this perspective allows you to look at how something can be accomplished rather than why it can’t be done; you look at possibilities rather than problems. People who begin from abundance believe that there are enough resources available to reach their goals and also that their success doesn’t mean failure for others.

Scarcity thinking, on the other hand, is a belief that there is not enough to go around and that, as a result, we must settle for less. For example, instead of “We can’t ask for that much money, we are only a small district…they won’t ever give it to us” think “What can we achieve for students in our district when we are able to fully fund this program?” Instead of “Look at all the resources we need” consider “Look at all the resources we have.” Scarcity thinking is limiting but safe; we don’t have to move into new territory. A scarcity mindset gives us permission to excuse poor performance (“We don’t have the time or the money or the people to do this!”). While we need to think realistically about the alignment of resources used with resources available, an abundance mentality allows for innovative ways of thinking about the use of those resources and how we deliver services. The challenge is to override your fear and to recognize when you have moved into that scarcity mindset.

Abundance starts in your mind. The more you think that you have all the resources that you need to succeed, the more you will succeed. Thinking abundantly reveals possibilities and opportunities that might never have occurred to you if you weren’t open to the concept that there is enough for everyone. As individuals, we are often willing to challenge and change our belief systems, but we can’t go very far in changing the mindset of an organization if the leadership doesn’t see the need to change their patterns of thinking. What kinds of activities need to happen in your organization to change from a focus on scarcity to one of abundance?

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Would you like more insight from MaryEllen?  Visit the Coach’s Corner on the GrantGoddess.com member site for multimedia resources and lots of wisdom and support from our Grant Coach. Click here to learn more about it and to sign up.

How is Your Organization’s Governance Equilibrium?

This is the second in a three-part series on Organizational Equilibrium, written by Non-Profit Consultant, Derek Link. Part 1 (How is Your Organization’s Fiscal Equilibrium?) was posted on February 16, 2010.

Governance as defined on http://dictionary.com is, “a method or system of government or management.” Non-profit organizations are governed by a Board of Directors who by design set policy, monitor accountability, assist with fund raising, and give direction to the Executive Director. Good governance is a team effort but bad things can happen when the governance of an organization is out of balance; that is, if there are imbalances in power, control, or understanding.

I worked in an organization once which had a publicly elected Board. This creates an interesting conundrum for the executive of the organization because they must be astute politically in order to survive changes in the Board. One particular Board member who was elected was an extremely difficult person to work with. She was smart and gifted verbally so she was able to deter all of the other Board members from standing up to her. She was also mean and enjoyed being in a position of power. She would go on the attack in Board meetings and even on an individual basis with executives of the organization. She eventually lost her seat but not before she had wreaked havoc on the leadership of the organization to the extent that several senior executives left the organization rather than suffer her unpredictable decision-making and verbal abuse.

My point in this is to say that non-profit Boards get to select their members according to the dictates of their bylaws. This puts non-profit organizations in a unique position to select Board members that can bring necessary skills, talents, and connections to the organization. This feature of non-profit organizations is a strength and can lead to excellent governance that is balanced, agile, and intelligent.

The opposite can also be true. If a Board becomes a closed society unto itself and refuses to include members outside a circle of friends, colleagues, or even a circle of thought, governance can stagnate and the same mistakes may be made over and again. Opportunities for change, growth, or reform may be lost.

Another issue with governance can be a Board that depends too much on its Executive Director and cedes responsibility for its role – a Board that becomes the proverbial “rubber stamp”.

I’ve seen “rubber stamps” in publicly elected Boards and with non-profit Boards. Non-profit organizations are frequently established by one or two people who plan to run the operation and then recruit a Board mostly because they must have one, not because they seek to build strong governance. So the founders may seek people who aren’t going to rock the boat.

Governance that relies on a strong leader can function well over time if the Executive Director is a skilled, moral and values-driven individual and, if they don’t leave. Of course as time passes everyone will move on for one reason or another so if governance of an organization has depended on one person, it can leave the organization in disarray.

I’ve found over the years in organizations reliant on one person for governance that there tends to be a pervasive fear in the organization about the person’s health, age, ability to take better offers, and so on.

Keeping the long view in mind is important so try not to depend too much on one individual for governance leadership. Stable governance of an organization is produced by equilibrium of a strong Board and strong leadership.Non-profit organizations are in the enviable position to recruit Board members that create this equilibrium.

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Part 3 in this series (How is Your Organization’s Operational Equilibrium?) will be posted on February 20, 2010.

Published by Creative Resources & Research http://grantgoddess.com